Capping machine



Aug. 26, w24 LSQ E. c. WEHNERT ET AL CAPPING MACHINE Filed Nov. 20, 19224 Sheets-Sheet l Aug, 269 92@o 1,596,209

E. c. wEHNl-:RT ET AL CAPP'ING MACHINE Filed Nov. 20, 1922 4Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug, 26, W24@ lgg E. C. WEHNERT ET AL CAPPING MACHINEFiled Nov. 20, 1922 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Aug. 26, 9246 l@ E. c.' WEHNx-:RTET A'.

CAPPING MACHINE Filed Nov. 20, 1922 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Aug. ze,1924.

' UNITED `ST.A.TF.S PATENTOFFICE.

ERNEST C. WEENERT, F ST. LOUIS, AND MARCUS G. BYDER, 0F OVEBLAND,MISSOURI.

CASI?PING' MACHINE.

Application led November To all whom z't may concern:

Be it known that we, ERNEST C. WEHNERT, a resident of St. Louis County,Missouri, and MARoUs G. RYDER, a resident of Overland, St. Louis County,Missouri, citizens of the United States, have invented a new and usefulCapping Machine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements 1n capping machines, and consistsin the novel lconstruction hereinafter disclosed.

` An object of the invention is to provide a machine for automaticallyapplying metal or paper covers, either tops or bottoms, to cylindricalor polygonal containers.

Another object of the invention is to provide conveying mechanism forcontainers, 1n combination with co-ordinated conveying mechanism fortops or covers for said containers, and automatic mechanism for applyingthe tops or covers to the containers after which the capped containersare moved forward and discharged from the machine.

Another object of the invention is to provide in a machine of the classdescribed certain adjustable features that will be more particularlypointed out hereinafter, whereby the machine may be adjusted foroperating upon containers of diderent dimensions and contours.

Another object of the invention is to equip a machine of the classdescribed wherein the cover conveyor is so arranged as to receive thecovers fed thereto in a reverse position and to deliver the covers insuch a position that they may be readily moved in place upon containersfed to the machine by a separate conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to equip a machine of the classdescribed with coordinated driving mechanism whereby the movements ofthe machine will be synchronized by the delivery of the container andthe covers to the capping mechanism, and to move the capped containersfor discharge from the machine.

Other advantages will be apparent from the following detaileddescription ofthe invention taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the machine embodyingthe invention.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the machine.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the machine.

20, 1922. Serial No. 002,046.

Fig. 4 is a detailed view further illustrating the capping mechanism.

Fig. 5 1s an enlarged vertical section through a section of the machineto illustrate the essential operations of the machine.

In theembodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing the machineis shown as including a base or pedestal 1 which adjustably supports a`frame member 2, lthe body of whlch is substantially Ushaped and whichhas an extension 3 fitting in a socket 4. in the top of the pedestal.This construction permits the frame of the machine to be raised andlowered in respect of the pedestal for adjusting the height of themachine.

The main operating shaft 5 of the machine is supported in bearings 6formed in the arms of the frame 2. The operating shaft extends aconsiderable distance beyond the side of the frame at one side, saidextending portion of the shaft carrying a fast and loose pulley 7 and 8for driving the shaft. rlhe other arm of the shaft 5 terminates close tothe frame of the machine and has attached thereto a hand wheel 9 formanual operation of the shaft.

A pair of vertical shafts 10 are mounted in bearings 11 supported at theends of the arms of the frame member 2. The shafts 10 are driven inopposite directions at the same rate of speed from the power shaft 5 bymeans of a pair of oppositely disposed bevel gears 12 carried by theshaft 5 and the shaftsl 10 respectively. The shafts 10 extend for aconsiderable distance above the frame of the machine and each carries ahead member. Each of the head members comprises a circular body 13.formed with a hub 141 on its under face, there being an openingextending through the axis of the body member and of the hub so that theheads may be removably supported upon the shafts 10 to which they areaffixed in any convenient manner, preferably by keying them on theshafts. The periphery of the body member 13 of each head is providedwith a series of notches 15, the upper wall of which is counter-boredforming a recess 16 at the top of the notches 15. rllhe face of the body13 is beveled to form an annular recess 17 at the forward edge of eachof the notches 15, the purpose of said recesses 16 and 17 being morefully described hereafter.

Upon the top face of each of the bodies 13 is a boss 18, the diameter ofthe boss 18.

being such that the vertical planey of the periphery thereof intersectsthe vertical plane of the base of the recesses 16, The Wall formed bythe edge of the boss 18 constitutes a guide for the covers as will behereinafter more clearly described.

Projecting rearwardly from each of the members 11 of the machine is abracket 19 and supported by one of said brackets is an upright support20 adjustably secured to the bracket by bolts 21. The support 20 is"provided with a pair of parallel elongated slots 22 for adjustablysupporting a forwardly extending arm 23. The arm 23 capable of beingadjusted at various elevations and to be fixed in position in respectofthe support 22 by set screws 24. The purpose of the arm 23 is to supporta pair of rollers 25 and 26 which rotate on studs 27 and 28 extendingoutwardly from the arm 23. The rollers operate to seat the covers uponthe containers as will more clearly appear in a description of theoperation ofthe machine. It will be noted that the rollers 25 and 26operate on parallel axes and that the roller 26 is of a slightly greaterdiameter than the roller 25.

The conveyor mechanism for the containers includes an endless belt 29supported at one end by a pulley 30, said pulley being mounted on ashaft 31 journaled in bearings 32, which bearings are supported byrollers 33 depending from the brackets 19. The opposite end of the belt29 is supported by a pulley 34, said pulley being mounted on a shaft 35carried by bearings 36, ysaid bearings being adjustably supported ateither side of the machine by a pair of arms 37, the inner ends of whicharms are removably carried in bosses 38 formed on the forward face ofthe arms of the frame 2 of the machine.

By providing for the longitudinal adjustment of the .bearing members 36on the arms 37 the tension of the conveyor belt 29 may be adjusted. Thebelt is driven from the main drive shaft by means of a sprocket 39carried by the shaft 5 and a sprocket 40 carried by the shaft 31, overwhich sprockets 39 and 40 a sprocket chain 41 operates.

At either side of the belt and above the same is a side rail 42, saidside rails 42 beineP supported by brackets 43 carried by the caringbrackets 36 and by brackets 44 extending upwardly from the bosses 38.The inner end of each of the side rails 42 is of a decreased widthforming a narrow extension 45 to clear the heads of the machine. Theextensions 45 are bent inwardly as indicated at 46 to form a narrowedpath for the containers, as best illustratedin Fig. 4. The purpose ofnarrowing the space between the side rails at the capping` point is tocenter the containers for the reception of the covers, permitting themto move freely between the side rails as they approach the capping Apoint. It will be noted that after the con tainers have passed beyondthe capping point the rails again expand, Which tends to extract thecontainers from the notches and permits them to move onwardly throughthe machine by movement of the conveyor. The cover conveyor is supportedby standards 47 adjustably mounted in bosses 48 extending from the frameof the machine. The standards 47 are preferably in the form of roundbars that pass through openings in the bosses 48 and are held atselected elevations by set screws 49. The standards 47 support aU-shaped bracket 5() in which are mounted, at either side, arms 51, thearms 5l extending across the top of the machine and rearwardly of theframe of the machine. At the rearward end of the arms 51 is anotherU-shaped bracket 52.

An endless belt 53 is supported at its forward end by a pulley 54mounted in bearings 55 extending from the bracket 50 and supported bythe arms 51. The rearward end of the belt is supported by a pulley 56mounted in bearings 57 carried on the rearward end of the arms 51. Thebearings 57 are adjustable longitudinally of the arms 51 so as totension the conveyor belt. The pulley 54 is driven from the main shaft 5by a chain and sprocket connection comprising a sprocket 58 on the shaft5, a chain 59 operating over a sprocket 60 on the shaft of the pulley54. Side rails 61 are supported at each side of the belt 53 by thebrackets 50 and 52. The side rails 61 are curved at their forward endsand extend downwardly to a point adjacent to the capping mechanism ofthe machine. A guide chute in the form of a pair of curved plates 62 ismounted at the forward end of the belt 53, being supported by thebracket 50. This chute overlies the end of the belt- 53 in such a way asto receive the cover members fed thereto by the conveyor belt 53 and toreverse the covers, presenting them to thev capping mechanism in properposition for mounting upon the containers. That is to say, the covermembers are received by the upper section of the conveyor belt 53 inreverse position, carried forward to the end of the belt Vand depositedupon the chute 62, being held from lateral displacement by the curvedsection of the side rail 61 and pass ing down the lower section of thechute by ravit to the ca inv oint. g Theyside rails tilpcolvldrge asthey reach the capping point, so that the covers, in the same manner asthe containers, have free movement on the conveyor'without contact withthe side rails, except for supporting them in upright position until thecovers approach the capping point when they are centralized by theconverging side rails so as to bring the covers and containers intoproper registration for seatingthe covers most.

the

on the containers without damagin h walls either of the container or ocaps?.1

e construction of the mechanism and the operation thereof may be better'under- -stood b particular reference toFig. 5, in

which t e c cle of operation of the machine is clearl il ustrated. Thecontainers 63 are fed to t e upper face of the conveyor belt 29 saidcontainers being placed on said belt in upright position 1n longitudinalseries with the end tobe capped upper- The operation of the conveyorbelt advances the containers toward the capping point. The space betweenthe side rails 42 is suilicient to permit the containers to clear theside rails so that they will move for-v ward without friction, but willbe prevented from tilting sidewise until they reach the capping pomt. Atthe same time the containers 63 are being fed to the capping point thecovers 64 are likewise being advanced to the capping point insynchronism with the movement of the containers. The caps are fed to theupper face of the conveyor belt 53 in up-turned position and inlongitudinal series. rlhis arrangement permits the caps to be dro peddirectly from a punch press or to be ed from bins or by hand as"preferred. rlhe covers move along the upper face of the conveyor belt53, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 5, ride over the end of the belt,reversing the position of the covers and are delivered to the chute 62down which the covers move by gravity. The side rails 62 have aninterval therebetween sucient to permit the free movement of the coverson the belt. When the covers are deposited on the lower section of thechute, the side rails converge so as to narrow the path of movement ofthe covers therebetween, thereby centralizing the covers for delivery tothe capping point.

rlhe containers reach the interval between the peripheries of the bodies13 of the heads in the manner clearly illustrated in Fig. 4, that is tosay while a capping operation is being performed the next container ofthe series is held in contact with theplain surface of the body of theheads, the movement of the containers being slightly retarded so as toproperly space the containers for reception in the notches in the bodyof the heads. As soon as the heads have moved sufliciently to bring eachpair of notches together, the container moves into the seat formed bythe side walls of the converging notches of the heads. The containersare carried forward on a true axis to a centralizing point, where thecapping operation occurs. As the containers are moving to the cappingpoint the covers, in an inclined positiou, are delivered to the face ofthe cap ping heads, the forward edge of the ,cover resting upon thesurface between the upper edge of the notched sections of the heads. Thevertical edge of the container impinges agalnst the boss 18 and againstthe roller 25.

'1 he mechanism is so coordinated that while the containers areretarded, as above explained, the covers will also be retarded that whenthe container moves forward the lower edge of the cover will be seatedover the forward edge of the topwall of the container. The space formedby the recesses 16 leaves an interval between the vertical wall of therecesses and the outer Awall of the upper part of the container,suflicient for the depending flange of the cover to seat over thecontainer and, drop within the recess.

In order that this 'seating operation may be effectively performed anarched plate 64a is mounted below the belt upon the frame of the machinein'such a way that the container is tilted and elevated justat themoment of the capping operation. lln other words, the covers, may beseated with greater facility by slightly tilting the container toreceive the forward edge .of the depending lange of the cover,thenraised to the high point, and tilted in the opposite direction.After the initial seating of the forward edge of the fla-nge of thecover over the edge of the container has been accomplished, thecontainer moves forward under the roller 25 which exerts pressureuponthe upper face of thecover to carry the cover lforwardly to its seat.rllhe container and cover then move forward under the roller 26 whichroller, as has been explained is of greater diameter than the roller 25,therefore exerts greater downward vmovement against the upper face ofthe cover. As it passes under this second roller 26 the cover is moveddownwardly upon the container sufiicientlyto bring it to its seat. y

lt is obvious that by changin the shape of the notches 15 irregularly saped containers may be capped in the machine of this invention. lt isalso obvious that containers of different heights may be capped byslight adjustment of the mechanism, that is to say by raising orlowering the rollers 25 and 26, and by adjusting the height of the plate64:.

We are aware that the invention may be modified in certain particularswithout departing from the spirit and scope thereofl We do not limitourselves unessentially, but

what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a machineof the character described, a chute. for guiding caps to an inclinedposition for engagement with containers, a conveyor for moving thecontainers to engage `the caps in inclined posit-ion, means for tiltingthe, containers to an angle of inclination opposite from the angle ofinclination of the caps when the containers engage the, caps, and adevice above said tilting means for pressing the caps upon thecontainers.

2.111 a machine of the class described, a conveyor device for moving thecontainers in a horizontal direction, a conveyor adapted to receive thecovers in reverse position and to deliver the same to the capping pointin position to be seated on the containers, a pair of revoluble Aheadsadapted to engage the containers, said heads being pioviCed with meansfor guiding the caps to tlieirseats on the containers, and pressuremeans for seating the caps on the containers after they have beenpositioned by said heads.

3. In a machine of the class described, a conveyor device for moving thecontainers in a horizontal direction, a conveyor adapted to receive thecovers in reverse position and to deliver the same to the capping pointin position to be seated on the containers, a pair of revoluble headsadapted to engage the containers, said heads being provided ivith meansfor guiding the caps to their seats on the containers, and pressuremeans including a pair of rollers for moving the caps to their seats.

4. In a machine of thel class described, a conveyor device for movingthe containers in a horizontal direction, a conveyor adapted to receivethe covers in reverse position and to deliver the saine to the cap-pingpoint in position to be seated on the containers, a pair of revolubleheads adapted to engage the containers, said heads being provided withmeans for guiding the caps to their seats on the containers, pressuremeans including a pair of rollers for moving the caps to their seats,and means for` adjusting the position of said rollers.

5. In a machine of the class described, :i continuous straight lineconveyor for feeding containers across the capping point of the machine,a conveyor for feeding the caps to the machine arranged above said firstnamed conveyor, a pair of revoluble heads mounted on opposite sides ofsaid first named conveyor .and arranged on parallel axes and driven inopposite directions, said heads being provided With cooperating notchesfor receiving the containers and with recesses for Guiding the caps totheir seats on the containers, and pressure means for exerting pressureon the caps to seat the same.

6. In a machine of the class described, a conveyor device for containersarranged to convey the containers on a straight line through themachine, a device in connection with said conveyor adapted to rock thecontainers as they pass through lthe capping mechanism, a conveyor forthe covers having a discharge chute feeding the covers by gravity at anangle to the containers, cappingheads including guiding recesses forguiding the caps over the edge of the containers, and pressure means forseating the caps after they have been positioned on the containers.

7. In a machine of the class described, a pair of revoluble cappingheads mounted on parallel shafts transversely of the machine, said headsbeing provided With con tainer-receiving notches and recessed portionsfor receiving and guiding the covers to their seats upon the containers,a belt' conveyor for receiving the caps in up-turned position, a chuteadapted to receive the caps and to reverse the same whereby said capsare fed to the capping point in position for reception upon thecontainers, guide rails in connection with the conveyor for thecontainers, said guide rails being arranged to center the containers,guide rails in connection with the cap conveyor arranged to center thecaps, and means for exerting pres.. sui-e on the caps to seat the saineafter they have been positioned by the heads.

8. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a chutefor guiding caps to position for engagement with containers, a conveyorfor the containers, mechanism for operating the conveyor to convey thecontainers to engagement With the caps, a device engaging the conveyorto tilt the containers when the containers engage the caps, and a rollerabove said device for pressing the caps upon the con-` tainers as thecontainers are carried under said roller.

9. In a machine of the class described, a horizontal endless beltconveyor for feeding the containers to the machine, side rails inconnection with the conveyor for guiding the containers in theirmovements through the machine, said side rails having a restricted paththerebetween at the capping point, a beveled plate beneath the cappingpoint of the machine arranged to present the containers in inclinedposition for the reception of the covers, an endless belt conveyorarranged above said firstnamed conveyor for moving the covers in adirection opposite from the containers, a chute arranged at the end ofsaid conveyor for receiving and reversing the covers and delivering thesame to the machi/ne, mechaioaace nism including revoluble heads havingnotches therein for receiving the containers, guiding surfaces inconnection with said notches for positioning the covers over the ends ofthe containers, and mechanism for pressing the covers to their seatsafter they have been positioned upon the containers.

l0. ln a machine of the class described, a horizontal endless beltconveyor for feeding the containers to the machine, side rails inconnection with the conveyor `for guiding the containers in theirmovements through the machine, said side rails having a restricted paththerebetween at the capping point, a beveled plate beneath the cappingpoint of the machine arranged to present the containers in inclinedposition for the reception of the covers, an endless belt conveyorarranged above said first-named conveyor for moving the covers in adirection opposite from the containers, a chute arranged at the end ofsaid -conveyor for receiving and reversing the covers and delivering thesame to the machine, mechanism including revoluble heads having notchestherein for receiving the containers, guiding surfaces in connectionwith said notches for positioning the covers over the ends of thecontainers, and

ltion for engagement with containers, a conveyor for moving thecontainers to engage the caps, means for tilting the containers -to anangle of inclination relative to the caps when the containers engage thecaps, and a device above said tilting means for pressing the'caps uponthe containers.

12. In a machine of the character described, a chute for guiding capelements to an' inclined position for engagement with 4containerelements, a conveyor for moving the container elements to engage the capelements in inclined positions, means for changing the angle ofinclination 'of one of said elements at the time said elements engageeach other, and a device for pressing the cap elements upon thecontainer elements.

ERNEST C. WEHNERT. MARCUS G. RYDER,

